Short facts about the geography of Suriname

Location:

Northern South America, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between French Guiana and Guyana

Geographic coordinates:

4 00 N, 56 00 W

Map references:

South America

Area:

total:  163,270 sq km land:  161,470 sq km water:  1,800 sq km

Area - comparative:

slightly larger than Georgia

Land boundaries:

total:  1,707 km border countries:  Brazil 597 km, French Guiana 510 km, Guyana 600 km

Coastline:

386 km

Maritime claims:

exclusive economic zone:  200 NM territorial sea:  12 NM

Climate:

tropical; moderated by trade winds

Terrain:

mostly rolling hills; narrow coastal plain with swamps

Elevation extremes:

lowest point:  unnamed location in the coastal plain -2 m highest point:  Juliana Top 1,230 m

Natural resources:

timber, hydropower, fish, kaolin, shrimp, bauxite, gold, and small amounts of nickel, copper, platinum, iron ore

Land use:

arable land:  0% permanent crops:  0% permanent pastures:  0% forests and woodland:  96% other:  4% (1993 est.) note:  there are 94,927 hectares of arable land, 7,195 hectares of permanent crops, and 15,000 hectares of permanent pastures

Irrigated land:

600 sq km (1993 est.)

Natural hazards:

NA

Environment - current issues:

deforestation as timber is cut for export; pollution of inland waterways by small-scale mining activities

Environment - international agreements:

party to:  Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands signed, but not ratified:  none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:

mostly tropical rain forest; great diversity of flora and fauna that, for the most part, is increasingly threatened by new development; relatively small population, most of which lives along the coast

Source: World Factbook